On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the eVitara from the Hansalpur plant in Gujarat. The Made-in-India eVitara will be exported to more than 100 countries, including Japan.

Modi also inaugurated the lithium-ion battery manufacturing facility by Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corp. Ltd., Toshiba, and Denso, supporting hybrid and electric vehicle battery production.

Suzuki will invest ₹70,000 crore in India over the next 5-6 years to increase production, launch new models and defend its market share in the world’s third-largest car market.

“Many companies have increased their trust on India,” the prime minister said at the event. “Till a few years back, EV battery were completely imported (into India). Localisation of battery cells and electrodes will provide a good boost to India’s EV infrastructure.”